Multiple hand poker system with choice of stud games

ABSTRACT

A player places a wager to participate in the play of the game. An initial deal of at least two partial hands of poker is dealt from a deck of cards. The player chooses at least one initial partial hand that will be placed into all or some wagered hands, and then chooses to play the wagered hand or hands as either a 5-card stud game, a 6-card stud game, a 7-card stud game, a split of 5-, 6-, or 7-card stud games, or a combination of those games Cards from the depleted deck are then dealt into each wagered hand, completing each hand to the chosen limit of cards according to the game selected. All wagered hands would then be compared to a predetermined pay table, and winnings awarded for certain combinations or ranks.

RELATED APPLICATION DATA

This Application claims priority from U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/684,441, filed May 25, 2005, and having the Title MULTIPLE HAND POKER SYSTEM WITH CHOICE OF STUD GAMES.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention

The present invention relates to a poker game suitable for use in casinos and other gaming establishments as a casino table card game or an electronic poker game such as video poker. The invention further relates to casino table gaming or video gaming play featuring multiple hands of stud poker that may be played concurrently and wherein the player chooses an initial partial hand that may be played as either a 5-, 6-, or 7-card stud game. 2. Background of the Art

Games based upon variations of poker have attained enormous popularity as casino-type entertainment games, particularly in the last twenty years. The success of poker games in the gaming industry is partially based on the game's simplicity (i.e., there is widespread public knowledge of the game rules) and the fact that players feel more directly involved in exercising judgment in the play of the game. Unlike typical slot machine games that are based solely on chance, video poker games allow the player to make simple, yet potentially important decisions which can affect the outcomes.

Many approaches to poker have been developed for casino table games and for video games. Draw poker games are especially popular, and represented on the casino floor in numerous variations. To a lesser degree, stud poker games also enjoy a faithful player following.

Basic draw poker provides the player with a deal of five cards, from which the player may choose to keep or hold none, any or up to all cards. Replacement cards are provided for the non-held cards, and the resultant hand is evaluated against a paytable. Awards are given for particular hands, from a return of the wager for a Pair of Jacks, for instance, to 800× the wager for a Royal Flush. Single-hand games as described have two major drawbacks. Firstly, the player can endure many losing games in a row before experiencing a win, and therefore may be discouraged to continue play on the machine. Secondly, due to the traditionally high percentage payouts of over 95% to the player, the casino's revenue per hour is at a minimum. For these reasons, games which permit the play of concurrent multiple hands have flourished.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,569,014 (Walker) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,332,839 (Walker) each disclose a method for playing draw poker wherein an initial hand is dealt, the player selecting to hold certain cards and discard others, if any, replacing the discards with replacement cards, and determining a payout on the resultant hand based on a ranking of the final hand and the number of cards drawn.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,517,074 (Moody); U.S. Pat. No. 6,135,883 (Hachquet); U.S. Pat. No. 6,098,985 (Moody); U.S. Pat. No. 6,050,568 (Hachquet); U.S. Pat. No. 6,007,066 (Moody); and U.S. Pat. No. 5,823,873 (Moody) each disclose a method for playing multiple hands of draw poker wherein an initial hand of cards is dealt, the player selecting none, one or more of the cards to be held, replacing the discards with replacement cards, and evaluating the resultant hand or hands for winning combinations.

Video stud poker games most often allow the player a lesser degree of involvement as compared to draw poker games. The very nature of stud poker discourages player intervention in the game, with the only player choices being to stay, fold or raise. A partial hand of cards is usually provided and additional cards are then provided to fill out the final hand. The player does not choose which cards to hold, and therefore no replacement cards are provided for discarded cards. For this reason, various improvements have been made to single hand and multiple hand stud games to increase player appeal.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,561,898 (Moody) discloses a method wherein the player is provided with the opportunity to increase or decrease the wager on multiple stud hands after the partial hands are shown and before the final hands are completed. Each partial hand contains the same cards, and the player does not choose a particular partial hand.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,511,068 (Sklansky) teaches a method of concurrent multiple communal card poker games wherein the player selects an initial partial hand which is then added to each of a plurality of communal-card flops, each communal-card flop corresponding to the number of poker games to be concurrently played. A plurality of remaining resulting poker hands are also derived, one for each combination of non-selected partial starting hands and each of the communal-cards flops. The participant's resulting poker hands are compared to the remaining resulting poker hands to determine any winning hands.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,358,144 (Kadlic) and U.S. Pat. No. 6,146,271 (Kadlic) teach a method of providing multiple hands of poker, each being dealt with two cards face up and three cards face down. The player chooses an initial partial hand, which is then duplicated into each of the other hands. The remaining face down cards in each hand are then revealed, and the player may then discard and draw replacement cards to final hands.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,135,882 (Kadlic) teaches a method of providing multiple hands of poker, each being dealt with two cards face up and three cards face down. The player chooses an initial partial hand, the remaining face down cards in that hand are then revealed, and the player may then discard and draw replacement cards in that hand to provide for a final hand.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,334,613 (Yoseloff) discloses a method which provides a partial hand which can be played as at least two distinctive games of poker, the nature of the at least two games requiring decisions to be made where a decision with regard to an election of play strategy in one poker game that is intended to have or assist in getting a positive outcome is likely to have a negative effect or comprises an adverse strategy in the play of the second game.

U.S. Pat. No. 6,132,311 (Williams) discloses a multiple play method wherein two cards are dealt face up and are the community cards that are common to each hand. The remaining three cards for each hand are dealt face down. The player may discard none, one or both of the face up community cards and receives replacement cards for the discarded cards, if any. The player may double his wager before or after the draw step. The face down cards are revealed, and final hands are evaluated for pays.

U.S. Pat. No. 5,100,137 (Fulton) describes a method wherein an electronic, poker-type game provides a player with an opportunity to increase the amount wagered, and therefore to increase a winning payout, even after the player has received a definite indication that the player has won.

U.S. Patent Application No. 20040113363 (Moody) discloses a method of play wherein one of the player's wagers is allocated to a full hand of cards and the other wagers are allocated among poker hands that are comprised of various subsets of the full hand.

U.S. Patent Application No. 20030162424 (Berman) teaches a method of concurrent multiple communal card poker games wherein the player selects an initial partial hand which is then added to each of a plurality of communal-card flops, each communal-card flop corresponding to the number of poker games to be concurrently played. Each of the resulting poker hands for the participant is compared to a pay table to determine corresponding payouts.

U.S. Patent Application No. 20030119572 (Moody) teaches a method wherein a player makes a wager to play multiple hands of a stud poker game. A plurality of initial partial hands is displayed to the player. Each initial partial hand has the same cards with the cards displayed face up to the player. Each hand is then completed as a stud poker final hand. The player wins or loses depending on the poker hand ranking of each final hand. If the player achieves two or more final hands of the same poker hand ranking, the amount won by the player is increased, preferably as multiples of the original payout amounts.

U.S. Patent Application No. 20030069055 (Moody) teaches a method wherein one hand of four cards is dealt. The player selects cards from the first hand as cards to be held which are reused from the first hand into all of the other hands. Replacement cards for the non-selected cards are dealt into the first hand and an additional card is dealt so that the first hand has five cards. Additional cards are also dealt to all of the other hands so that each hand is a five card hand. The poker hand ranking of each hand is determined. The player is then paid for any winning poker hands based on a pay table and the amount of the player's wager.

It is an ever-increasing chso again you leaveitallenge to provide players with new and enticing gameplay features that will stimulate player interest and increase time on the machine.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A player places a wager to participate in the play of the underlying card game described herein. The wager may be selected by the player to include wagering on a single hand of play or wagering on each hand in concurrent multiple hands of play and the size of the wager may vary dependent upon the machine or the house rules. An initial deal of at least two partial hands of poker of at least one card each are dealt from a standard deck of cards, a standard deck of cards with certain cards removed, or a standard deck of cards that is augmented by wild cards or jokers. The player is directed to choose one of the multiple initial partial hands that will be placed into all wagered hands. The player is then directed to choose to play the wagered hand or hands as either a 5-card stud game, a 6-card stud game, a 7-card stud game, a split of 5-, 6-, or 7-card stud games or a combination of those games. Cards from the non-selected initial partial hands are returned to the initial deck of cards or discarded, so that the remaining deck of cards would now contain the initial deck minus the cards in the one chosen partial hand or the initial deck excluding all of the cards in both or all (e.g., if there were more than 2 partial hands) of the partial hands. Cards from the same depleted deck are then dealt into each wagered hand, completing each hand to the chosen limit (i.e., a 5-card hand with a chosen partial hand of 2 cards would be completed with 3 additional cards, a 6-card stud hand with a chosen partial hand of 2 cards would be dealt an additional 4 cards from the depleted deck, etc.). All wagered hands would then be compared to a predetermined pay table, and winnings awarded for certain combinations or ranks. The pay tables for the different stud games (i.e., 5-, 6- or 7-card stud games) will likely differ by decrementing the pay tables as the number of cards in the stud hand increases, and/or increasing the minimum rank required for an award as the number of cards in the stud hand increases, although a uniform pay table for all hands may be provided to ‘level’ apparent payouts and make selection of higher numbers of cards more attractive. This method may be used with various poker game variations such as Jacks or Better, Bonus Poker Games, or Wild Card Games.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 shows a video poker machine with wagering buttons and a monitor screen.

FIG. 2 shows a wager for 3 hands at 5 credits per hand.

FIG. 3 shows an initial deal of two partial hands of two cards each.

FIG. 4 shows the player choosing a partial hand and choosing to play each hand as a 5-card stud hand.

FIG. 5 shows the initial partial hand inserted into each of three 5-card stud hands.

FIG. 6 shows each of the completed 5-card stud hands.

FIG. 7 shows an alternate play of the initial partial hands in FIG. 3, wherein the player chooses a partial hand and chooses to play one hand each of 5-, 6-, and 7-card stud.

FIG. 8 shows the initial partial hand inserted into each of stud hands.

FIG. 9 shows each of the completed stud hands.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The basic game of stud poker, with whatever number of cards is used as the final hand, is played by each hand (for each player or multiple hands to a single player) being dealt to a hand position and the rank of the hand is determined. In club or private games, the individual players play against each other and place wagers at each stage of the game (e.g., after the initial partial hand and then as each additional card or cards is provided to each player or as community cards). In a casino table card game or video card game environment, the final rank of each hand is compared to a paytable, and hands of predetermined ranks are paid according the rank attained and the amount of the wager on that particular hand.

The various types of stud games are primarily differentiated by the number of cards used in the hands (e.g., 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, and 7) and the number of cards used to establish a hand rank (usually 5 cards being a typical maximum number of cards to actually define a hand in play). For example, 5-card stud, 6-card stud and 7-card stud each form hands of five cards to determine the rank in the game.

As previously noted, the games according to the present disclosure may be provided as a live or hybrid casino table game or as a video gaming system. By hybrid systems is meant those systems known in the art where there may be a fully automated gaming table, such as the Shuffle Master, Inc. Multi-Player Platform™ system or a system with a dealer and automated bet recognitions and card reading and/or display. The wager may be provided in a casino table card game with chips, tokens, money, credit or credit charge. The wager in a video game is usually made with credits or credit charges.

One stud poker game that is very popular is a stud hold 'em game, in which a partial hand is dealt to each player (e.g., two cards) and only the player receiving the partial hand sees that partial hand. Wagering progresses at various stages of play, and community cards are provided in full view of all players. The players win pots containing all previous antes and wagers with the highest final hand rank. In 7-card stud, the highest five card rank wins the hand.

Although these games are very popular, and the casinos provide poker rooms for their play, casinos make their profit on the games by taking a rake or percentage of wagers or absolute amounts from each round of play. This is not a system that is attractive to players, who feel that the house is taking money out of play. It has therefore been desirable to provide more games in which play is against a paytable where awards can be easily calculated and the house profit comes from statistical considerations in the structure of the game. This house profit is often referred to as the “hold” in gaming parlance.

It is desirable to construct alternative games of stud poker that offer more options and excitement to players. The following descriptions describes methods and apparatus of play that assists in these games.

A player places a wager to participate in the play of the underlying card game. The wager may be selected by the player to include wagering on a single hand of play or wagering on each hand in concurrent multiple hands of play. That is, the player may wish to play one hand at a time (with a single set of partial hands) or play two or more hands (e.g., up to 100 hands) based on the initial partial hands provided). After placing the wagers, the ultimate games to be played may not yet be determined (as between 5-, 6- and 7-card poker) or may be preselected before the wager is made. That is, the player may allocate wagers on specific types of games (e.g., one 5-card stud hands, two 6-card stud hands and one 7-card stud hand) and distribute wagers accordingly, or the player may wait until after viewing the partial hands to designate which game or games are to be played.

An initial deal of at least two partial hands of poker of at least one card each are dealt from a single (or multiple) standard deck(s) of cards, standard deck(s) of cards with certain cards removed, or standard deck(s) of cards that is augmented by wild cards or jokers. Whether or not the player has not already selected the distribution of games to be played in the game round, the player is directed to choose one or more of the multiple initial partial hands that will be placed into each or all wagered hands. For example, if the player receives a pair as one partial hand and two unsuited cards as another partial hand, the player may wish to distribute only the pair among the games. Again for example, if the player receives a pair of sevens and a 10 and Jack of clubs (10

J

), the player may want to distribute both of those hands among the various games for which he/she has already provided an initial wager. The player is then directed to choose to play each or all of the wagered hand or hands as either a 5-card stud game, a 6-card stud game, a 7-card stud game, a split of 5-, 6-, or 7-card stud games or a combination of those games. Cards from the non-selected initial partial hands may be returned to the initial deck of cards or discarded. In the first instance, the remaining deck of cards would now contain the initial deck minus only the cards in the chosen partial hand. In the second event, the remaining deck may include the initial deck less both or all partial hands. The player may be presented with an option of discarding the cards in remaining (unselected) partial hands or returning them to the remaining deck. For example, if the two partial hands were two pairs of sevens, the player would likely keep only one of the partial hands (a pair of 7s is not likely to be paid and there would be no 7s remaining in the deck if all were removed as separate hands) and return the other hand into the remaining deck. In the case where the two. partial hands were K

Q

and 2

4♦, the player would save the KQ and would want the 2

4♦ to be discarded, as they have no potential benefit to the saved partial hand. It would therefore be highly desirable to allow the player an additional option of whether a non-selected partial hand is to be returned to the remaining cards and be available among additional cards to be delivered to partial hands, or whether the cards are undesirable and are to be discarded. This feature provides the player with more options, appears to place the game more under player control, and therefore makes the game more attractive to players. Cards from the same depleted deck (e.g., less one or more partial hands in play or discarded) are then dealt into each wagered hand, completing each hand to the chosen limit (i.e., a 5-card hand with a chosen partial hand of 2 cards would be completed with 3 additional cards, a 6-card stud hand with a chosen partial hand of 2 cards would be dealt an additional 4 cards from the depleted deck, etc.). It is also possible to provide a new complete deck so that cards in partial hands in play are also available as additional cards, but this is less preferred. All completed wagered hands would then be compared to a predetermined pay table (for the specific game play selected by the player) and winnings would be awarded for certain predetermined combinations or ranks. The pay tables for the different stud games (i.e., 5-, 6- or 7-card stud games) will likely differ by decrementing the pay tables as the number of cards in the stud hand increases, and/or increasing the minimum rank required for an award as the number of cards in the stud hand increases, although a uniform pay table for all hands may be provided to ‘level’ apparent payouts and make selection of higher numbers of cards more attractive. This method may be used with various poker game variations such as Jacks or Better, Bonus Poker Games, or Wild Card Games.

A sample of paytables for the different games is provided below as examples, but not as limitations in the practice of the game. Three Distinct Paytables for 5-Card Stud, 6-Card Stud and 7-Card Stud RANK ODDS ON WAGER 5-Card Stud Table PAIR OF JACKS OR BETTER 1:1 TWO PAIR 2:1 THREE-OF-A-KIND 3:1 STRAIGHT 4:1 FLUSH 5:1 FULL HOUSE 7:1 FOUR-OF-A-KIND 25:1  STRAIGHT FLUSH 250:1  ROYAL FLUSH 1000:1   6-CARD Stud Table PAIR OF ACES OR BETTER 1:1 TWO PAIR 1:1 THREE-OF-A-KIND 3:1 STRAIGHT 4:1 FLUSH 5:1 FULL HOUSE 7:1 FOUR-OF-A-KIND 20:1  STRAIGHT FLUSH 200:1  ROYAL FLUSH 900:1  7-Card Stud Table PAIR OF JACKS OR BETTER 0 TWO PAIR 1:1 THREE-OF-A-KIND 2:1 STRAIGHT 3:1 FLUSH 4:1 FULL HOUSE 6:1 FOUR-OF-A-KIND 20:1  STRAIGHT FLUSH 150:1  ROYAL FLUSH 700:1 

Reference to the Figures will assist in further understanding of the practice of the present invention.

FIG. 1 shows a slot machine housing 2 and monitor screen 4 with 6 buttons for hand play selection 6, six buttons for credits wagered per hands selected 8, a first hand play selection button that doubles as a HOLD button 10 for a partial hand selection, a second hand play selection button that doubles as a HOLD button 12 for an alternate partial hand selection, a 5-card stud game button 14, a 6-card stud game button 18, a 7-card stud game button 16, a 5/6/7-card stud game split button 20, a Max Bet button 22, and a Deal button 24.

FIG. 2 shows the slot machine housing 2 and monitor screen 4 with the player placing a wager by pressing the Play 3 Games button 30, the Bet 5 Credits Per Hand button 32, and the Deal button 24.

FIG. 3 shows the slot machine housing 2 and monitor screen 4 with the deal of one partial hand consisting of a 3 of Diamonds and an 8 of Spades 40 and a second partial hand consisting of a Pair of Jacks 42. Three grid boxes corresponding to the three wagered hands are shown (44, 46, 48), as well as one paytable for 5-Card Stud games 50, one paytable for 6-Card Stud games 52, and one paytable for 7-Card Stud games 54.

FIG. 4 shows the slot machine housing 2 and monitor screen 4 with one partial hand 40 and a second partial hand 42, and the player's choice of the HOLD button 56 to keep the cards in the second partial hand 42. The player's choice to play the three wagered hands (44, 46, 48) as 5-Card Stud games 58 is shown. The monitor screen also shows one paytable for 5-Card Stud games 50, one paytable for 6-Card Stud games 52, and one paytable for 7-Card Stud games 54.

FIG. 5 shows the slot machine housing 2 and monitor screen 4 with the second partial hand consisting of a Pair of Jacks 42 inserted into each of the three wagered hands (44, 46, 48). Three blank cards (60, 62, 64) representing the remaining cards of Hand 1 44, three blank cards (66, 68, 70) representing the remaining cards of Hand 2 46, and three blank cards (72, 74, 76) representing the remaining cards of Hand 3 48, are shown. The paytable for 5-Card Stud games 50 is highlighted to represent that it is in play and both the paytable for 6-Card Stud games 52 and the paytable for 7-Card Stud games 54 are shown darkened to represent that they are not in play.

FIG. 6 shows the slot machine housing 2 and monitor screen 4 with the three wagered hands (44, 46, 48) completed, each consisting of the partial hand 42 and three newly dealt cards (80, 82, 84), (86, 88, 90) and (92, 94, 96). The paytable for 5-Card Stud games 50 remains highlighted in order to determine wins in the three completed wagered hands (44, 46, 48) and both the paytable for 6-Card Stud games 52 and the paytable for 7-Card Stud games 54 remain darkened and out of play.

FIG. 7 shows a slot machine housing 2 and monitor screen 4 with an alternate play of the deal as shown in FIG. 3. One partial hand 40 and a second partial hand 42 are shown. The player's choice of the HOLD button 100 to keep the cards in the second partial hand 42 is shown highlighted, as is the player's choice to play the three wagered hands (44, 46, 48) as a split of 5-Card Stud, 6-Card Stud and 7-Card Stud games 102. The monitor screen also shows one paytable for 5-Card Stud games 50, one paytable for 6-Card Stud games 52, and one paytable for 7-Card Stud games 54.

FIG. 8 shows the slot machine housing 2 and monitor screen 4 with the second partial hand consisting of a Pair of Jacks 42 inserted into each of the three wagered hands (44, 46, 48). Hand 1 44 is played as 5-Card Stud, as shown by three blank cards (110, 112, 114) representing the remaining cards of Hand 1 44. Hand 2 46 is played as 6-Card Stud, as shown by four blank cards (116, 118, 120, 122) representing the remaining cards of Hand 2 46. Hand 3 48 is played as 7-Card Stud, as shown by five blank cards (124, 126, 128, 130, 132) representing the remaining cards of Hand 3 48. The paytable for 5-Card Stud games 50, the paytable for 6-Card Stud games 52 and the paytable for 7-Card Stud games 54 are all highlighted to represent that each paytable is in play.

FIG. 9 shows the slot machine housing 2 and monitor screen 4 with the three wagered hands (44, 46, 48) finalized, each consisting of the partial hand 42 and newly dealt cards (140, 142, 144), (146, 148, 150, 152) and (154, 156, 158, 160, 162). The paytable for 5-Card Stud games 50, the paytable for 6-Card Stud games 52 and the paytable for 7-Card Stud games 54 all remain highlighted in order to determine wins in the three completed wagered hands (44, 46, 48).

Although specific examples and specific images have been provided in this discussion, these specifics are intended to be only support for the generic concepts of the invention and are not intended to be absolute limits in the scope of the technology discussed. 

1. A method of playing a wagering card game comprising: a player placing at least one initial wager prior to viewing any cards in play during the wagering card game; the player receiving at least two partial hands from a set of cards after placing the at least one first wager; the player selecting one of the at least two partial hands for play in the wagering game; subsequent to receiving the at least two partial hands, the player selecting at least one game hand to be played according to the rules of at least two choices allowed among a 5-card game, 6-card game and 7-card game; the selected one of the two partial hands being assigned to the at least one game hand selected; cards being dealt to the at least one game hand to complete a hand according to the rules of the game selected from among the 5-card game, 6-card game and 7-card game; and resolving the at least one initial wager against a paytable.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein subsequent to receiving the at least two partial hands, the player selecting at least one game hand to be played according to the rules of a 5-card game, 6-card game and 7-card game.
 3. The method of claim 1 wherein cards being dealt to the at least one game hand to complete a hand according to the rules of the game selected from among the 5-card game, 6-card game and 7-card game include cards that were not selected as the partial hand to be played.
 4. The method of claim 1 wherein cards being dealt to the at least one game hand to complete a hand according to the rules of the game selected from among the 5-card game, 6-card game and 7-card game does not include cards that were not selected as the partial hand to be played.
 5. The method of claim 1 wherein the player elects whether cards being dealt to the at least one game hand to complete a hand according to the rules of the game selected from among the 5-card game, 6-card game and 7-card game include or do not include cards that were not selected as the partial hand to be played.
 6. The method of claim 2 wherein the player elects whether cards being dealt to the at least one game hand to complete a hand according to the rules of the game selected from among the 5-card game, 6-card game and 7-card game include or do not include cards that were not selected as the partial hand to be played.
 7. The method of claim 5 wherein the election is made after the at least two partial hands are viewed by the player.
 8. The method of claim 5 wherein the election is made before the at least two partial hands are viewed by the player.
 9. The method of claim 1 wherein separate paytables are used to resolve wagers for each of the 5-card game, 6-card game and 7-card game.
 10. The method of claim 1 wherein when multiple initial wagers are placed by the player, multiple hands are played by the player.
 11. The method of claim 10 wherein at least two of the multiple hands are played according to different games from the group of the 5-card game, 6-card game and 7-card game.
 12. The method of claim 1 wherein different paytables with at least some different odds on identical hands are provided for the 5-card game, 6-card game and 7-card game.
 13. The method of claim 1 wherein the game is played as a video game with a monitor.
 14. The method of claim 1 wherein the game is played as a casino table game.
 15. The method of claim 14 wherein a live dealer delivers cards to players.
 16. The method of claim 10 wherein at least two of the multiple hands are played according to same games from the group of the 5-card game, 6-card game and 7-card game.
 17. The method of claim 10 wherein all of the multiple hands are played according to same games from the group of the 5-card game, 6-card game and 7-card game. 